Frame mounting and adjusting apparatus



1954 .J. T. HAEFNER ,0 2

FRAME MOUNTING AND ADJUSTING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 28, 1950 2Sheets-Sheet 1 EICLAL INVENTOR. Joseph T Haefner. BY

ATTORNEY 1954 J. T. HAEFNER FRAME MOUNTING A'ND ADJUSTING APPARATUS 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 28, 1950 1N VEN TOR. J gQPh T, Haefnef.

ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 2, 1954 FRAME "MOUNTING AND ADJUSTING -APPARATUSJoseph .T. Haefner, Philadelphia, Pa assignor to The Budd Company,Philadelphizu'Pa a, corporation ofPennsylvania Application November28,1950, Serial No..197:,893

.3 Claims.

1 'This invention relates to frame mounting and adjusting apparatus forsecuring a frame .to a

wall, and has. for an object the provision of improvements in thisart.

One of the particular objects of the invention is to provide a frame, asfor a mirronwhich can be very quickly mounted on a wall.

Another object is to provide a frame which can be quickly adjusted inposition on an irregular surfaced wall.

Another object is toprovide a frame which can be easily mounted withoutinjury to the object, such as a mirror, which it carries.

Another object is toprovide a framehaving the advantages desired with asimple, sturdy, and relatively inexpensive construction.

Theabove and other objects and advantages of the invention will beapparent from the following description of an.'illustrativeembodiment,reference being made tov theaccompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is afront elevation of a mirror frame mounted on awall in accordance withthe present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line=3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a face elevation of a finish stripsepa rated from the frame;

' Fig. 5 is a view like Big. 1 but withthe mirror removed;

6 is a section taken on the line S'6 of Fig. 5;

Fig.7 is a section taken on the line '|--'i of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is an elevation of the anchor or mounting plates secured to theWall, the position-which the frame occupied and which it will againfinally occupy being shown'in broken lines;

Fig. 9 is a section similar to Fig. 6 showing the frame being removedafter the anchor plates have been secured to the wall;

Fig. 10 is a rear view of theframe with the mirror secured thereinreadyfor final mounting on the wall; and

Fig. 11 is a section taken on the line i E---! l of Fig. 10.

As shown in the drawings of the preferred embodiment, a frame is carries:a mirror which is mounted on a wall :2. The wall may be of heavy sheetmetal, as is common on rail cars, where the invention has beenextensively-used. The wall is usually irregular whereas the mirror is aplane and must bemounted in a plane condition to avoid breakage.Heretofore it has been the practice to shim up at each screw locationand this procedure is so tedious that the mounting. of a mirror.hasrequiredmany hours of :work.

By the use of the present frame and mounting by retainingstrips 19; heldby .screwsizfi.

hole. for turning and will not'vibrate out 'ofa set' position.

'2 means the mounting time has-been cut down greatly, and moreover, themountingmeansis suitable for. anywvall location whatever instead ofhaving to be made'specially foreaoh location.

The frame may be made of metal and conveniently'by arc welding at the.corners along =miterlines I3 and-then grinding to .a smooth finish. Ifdesired, the entire outer surface may befinallycoated tog-ive auniformappearance.

The frame is adjustably secured to the wall .at a

plurality of spaced points by screws it, the heads of whichareaccessible from thefront, as shown in Fig. 1.

The frame-on the back and from the interior 'edge'is recessed orrabbeted, asat l,--to receive the mirror ll. Preferablythe-edgesof themirror are encased inqa channekshaped molding ll of resilientmaterial;suchfor. example as rubber.

This may be backed, ifdesired, byia strip it, as of friction tape. Themirror is held in the frame The strips IS may be continuous or may bemadeas a pluralityof separatetabs, as shown.

The securingmeansherein provided make the .assembly'and removalof themirror very easy and quick. It will beassumed; for reasons which will beclear afterthe present "mountingmeans are described, that the mirroryisnot installed in the frame until the, anchorage; means, have. beeninstalled inthemanner characteristicof the present invention.Instorageandasreceived for mounting on-t-hexwall'the frames, are free ofobstruction in the enclosed area.

The frameshave hOlESzZ l to receive the screws Means are provided forretaining the screw E5 in the "frame for rotation 'but holding itfixedagainst axial- :movement relative to the frame. The meansillustratedcomprisesa sleeve-or bushing 25 which surrounds-thescrew-within the enlarged counterboredoportion :of 'therhole. The

-. bushing is retained, as zbyaa plate; 25 and screws :"2 i.

The .-.bushing is ;-slightly "longer l than the lengthof thecounterboreebelow. the screw 'Vfiange andthe plate. 281is=-resilient so:that. the flange is resiliently pressed against=the=:shoulder of the Asaresult, -the screw: requires some force vAnchor"meansare provided forthescrews. As

shown, an anchoror mounting plate 6;? is provided with ,a tapped hole 3|for the protruding endofhthescrew ,iSTThe plate 3'9 is also providedwith a .hole.32 to.take ,a,screw"33 which secures the plate .tothewall.-For..a.sheet..meta1 wall it is preferable to use hardened self-tappingsheet metal screws. The screw 33, of course, turns freely in the hole32. v

As the frames are received for mounting on the wall they are free ofmirrors or other obstruction in the enclosed field area and the anchorplates 30 are exposed within the frame. They are pulled up tight againstthe back of the frame by the screws I and are oriented about the screwsl5 to occupy fairly closely the equi-angular position relative to theframe, as shown. If the frame is large there may be securement at one ormore places along the sides, if desired, and here the intermediateanchor plates 38 are positioned approximately normal to the side of theframe.

The empty frame with the parts thus arranged is brought into properposition on the wall and holes are made in the wall by a suitable toolat the center of each hole 32 in the anchor plates, The anchor platesare then secured to the wall by the screws 33. The adjustment screws 15are then turned out and the frame removed from the wall, the anchorplates 30 being left on the wall. If necessary, oversized holes 34 aremade in the wall to freely receive the ends of the screws i5 whichprotrude through the tapped holes 3! in the anchor plate.

When it is desired to finally mount the frame with the mirror inposition on the wall, say after all other construction work has beencompleted so the danger of breakage is largely past, the mirror ismounted in the frame by the molding H, strips [9 and screws 29. Theframe with the mirror is then brought into place on the wall and thescrews [5 turned into the tapped holes 3| of the anchor plates 30. Ifthe plates have in the meantime been moved out of position it is onlynecessary to turn them about the screws 33 to bring the holes 3| intoproper position. By proper adjustment of the screws it the frame isquickly brought into adjusted position on the wall, no matter howirregular the surface.

If the wall surface happens to be plane the rear edge of the frame willfit it closely without leaving any noticeable space or gap anywhere, butif the wall surface is irregular, as it will be in most cases, therewill be unsightly gaps in places. The present invention, in conjunctionwith the frame adjusting means, takes care of this situation byproviding an adjustable bridging strip around the frame on the rear. Inthe form illustrated, the frame is made with a peripheral rearwardlyprojecting flange 35 and upon this flange there is saddled a U-shapedfinish strip 31 which is closed up at the open end sufficiently to bindtightly on the flange.

The U-shaped strip 31 is placed upon the flange before the frame isbrought into position for final installation. After the frame has beeninstalled and adjusted, the finish strip is driven back against the wallall around the frame. The finish strip may be made as a single piece,cut out at the corners from the inside and bent to fit the frame. Theends are abutted on a side, preferably near the bottom, where the jointwill not be especially noticeable.

It will thus be seen that the invention provides a frame and associatedmounting means therefor which enable the frame to be quickly, accuratelyand firmly mounted on a wall and the space between the frame and wallquickly, fully and effectively closed around the periphery by a closingstrip. The frame may be as readily removed. It is adapted withoutsubstitution or change of parts for mounting in different walllocations. Moreover, the parts are all simple and relativelyinexpensive.

While one embodiment of the invention has been described for purposes ofillustration, it is to be understood that there may be variousembodiments within the general scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A frame and mounting means therefor adapted to attach the frame to anirregular wall, comprising'in combination with a frame, a plurality ofspaced screws disposed in holes in the frame, the screws having theirhead ends accessible from the front of the frame, the holes in the framebeing counterbored from the rear of the frame, an annular flange on eachscrew within the counterbore, a member within the counterbore encirclingeach screw and pressing the screw flange against the end of thecounterbore, means secured to the rear of the frame pressing saidencircling member against the screw flange to retain the screw Withinthe hole and hold it against endwise movement relative thereto but topermit frictional turning movement of the screw, a strap tapped for thescrew and adapted to be drawn up tightly against the back of the frameby the screw, the strap extending inwardly of the frame and having ahole to receive a screw or the like to secure the strap to a wall,turning movement of the flanged screws causing adjusting movement of theframe relative to the wall.

2. A frame and mounting means therefor adapted to attach the frame to anirregular wall, comprising in combination with the frame, a plurality ofspaced screws rotatably retained in said frame against endwise movementrelative thereto, said screws extending therethrough from front to backand having heads accessible from the front of the frame, an anchor platefor each screw adapted to be secured to the wall and having a tappedhole to receive the screw, the frame having a rearwardly extendingmarginal flange at the outer periphery, and a U-shaped trim piecefrictionally embracing said flange for movement from and toward the wallafter the frame has been secured in adjusted position by said screws forfilling the space between frame and wall.

3. A frame and mounting means therefor adapted to attach the frame to anirregular wall, comprising in combination with the frame, a plurality ofmounting and retaining elements, each constructed and arranged to move apart of the frame from and toward the wall, for adjustably mounting theframe at a plurality of spaced points to the wall, and telescopic spacefilling means frictionally adjustably mounted on the periphery of theframe and accessible from outside the frame for adjustment after theframe has been secured in final position for filling the space betweenframe and wall after the frame is mounted and adjusted on the wall.

JOSEPH T. HAEFNER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,465,549 Gilchrist Aug. 21, 1923 2,016,604 Karnell Oct. 8,1935 2,338,559 Winkelmeyer Jan, 4, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number CountryDate 455,765 Germany Feb. 27, 1928

